


The Journey Begins (We Knew We Were Done)

by thesaddestofbeans



Series: Seven to One [3]
Category: Xenoblade Chronicles
Genre: Late game spoilers, M/M, Mentions of other characters - Freeform, be careful lovelies, happens post game with mechonis core spoilers, is this 1000 words of shulk and reyn being soft?, maybe so
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-19
Updated: 2020-06-19
Packaged: 2021-03-03 20:42:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,035
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24801775
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thesaddestofbeans/pseuds/thesaddestofbeans
Summary: 1000 words of just pure soft lovin. thats it.once again part of my seven to one series but can easily be read alonethese boys? theyre good boys. let them be happy.i put it in the tags already but there ARE late game spoilers so be careful babes
Relationships: Reyn/Shulk (Xenoblade Chronicles)
Series: Seven to One [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1196080
Comments: 5
Kudos: 37





	The Journey Begins (We Knew We Were Done)

It was their first time alone together in months.

There were so many things that hadn’t been said- after Shulk’s revival it had been a mad dash to the top of the Bionis, followed by three of the toughest fights in Reyn’s life. And, of course, once they woke up in the new world they were kept consistently busy explaining just what, exactly, had happened to the Bionis and the colonies.

So, here they are- back in Outlook Park with Shulk sitting, calm as ever, on a bench overlooking the sea, and Reyn leaning uncomfortably on the fence separating solid land from sandy beach.

The air is tense; something had developed between them during their months of travel and yet the initial fear that kept them apart in the first place is back in full force.

Reyn, as always, is the one to break the silence. “I’ve missed ya. Feels like we haven’t even seen each other since the fight.”

Shulk hums in response, scared that words will tumble unbidden from his mouth the moment he speaks.

Reyn looks away before pushing himself off from against the fence. He stares for a moment at Shulk, waiting for him to respond, but… He begins pacing to try and rid himself of the cold, creeping feeling under his skin.

“This place is cool, huh? The fog is new, though.”

Once again, Reyn is met with silence.

“Although I guess it isn’t all that different from the ether clouds in the marsh, y’know? At least here we don’t have to worry about things lurking about.”

He hates it when Shulk draws into himself like this. Reyn has tried to get him to open up more with varying success; their time together fighting the mechon was the closest they had ever been. And then Shulk was swept away, first by the cruel hands of Zanza and then by the simple tides of responsibility.

The oppressive silence between them holds more significance than the years of banter.

“I’ve missed you, too,” Shulk mutters, sending a jolt down Reyn’s spine.

Reyn bristles but doesn’t speak, scared to acknowledge the hope bubbling in his chest.

Shulk’s hands clench in his lap. “We talked… You know, Fiora and I, after everything. We were both so busy from the moment we reunited to when we finally took down Zanza. We didn’t realize things had changed until we were together with the rest of our lives stretched out in front of us.”

“Wait, what do you mean?” Reyn asks, confusion written in the lines of his face.

Shulk tenses further. “It’s… We realized, once we had a future that didn’t involve a life of hunting mechon or running after Zanza, that we only really felt the way we did out of obligation. Dunban said it all the time, right? We were perfect, made for each other. Everyone knew we were going to end up together in the end, but... I was just... Never interested in women in the first place, I suppose. Fiora is great, I love her! She’s like family. She just never really balanced me out in the way you do.”

They both went silent, unsure of how to move forward.

Shulk mumbles, “I-”

“Maybe-”

“Sorry, I mean-”

“No, it’s ok-”

“You first-”

“It’s not important-”

Shulk laughs, and after a moment of hesitation so does Reyn. “Sit down, Reyn. Watching you fidget makes me nervous.”

“Alright, alright.” Reyn collapses onto the bench next to him.

“The point is… Fiora understands. She has always understood, to be honest- it’s why she never pushed me for more.” Shulk hesitates, then places his hand on Reyn’s arm. “She told me that I didn’t need to hold on to her out of some sort of romantic obligation. She said she knew our journey didn’t happen because I was _in_ love with her, it happened because I love her- as my dear friend, as an incredible, precious part of the family I had forged for myself over the years. And to be honest… She was right.”

Reyn turns towards Shulk, inadvertently brushing Shulk’s hand off of his shoulder. He can see the hesitation in Shulk’s eyes, the cogs that never stop turning in his head working overtime, can feel the anxious tremors running through his body. He takes the hand hanging in the air between them, and then the one still in Shulk’s lap, and Reyn is almost positive his hands are shaking too.

Shulk starts at barely a whisper. “I love you, Reyn. I love that you know how to keep me grounded and I love that you can always tell when I have something on my mind and I love that you’ve always stood by me while things spun out of control. I love that you never once doubted the visions I saw even when I was doubting myself and that you aren’t afraid to tell me when enough is enough. And Reyn… I love that, even after I was gone, even after everything in the world couldn’t bring me back, all it took was the realization that Zanza’s power was nothing in comparison to the love I have for you, and every one of our friends, to bring me back.

“I’m sorry it took so long for me to realize it. You were so kind, so patient while I was off busy with delusions of saving the world, but we _did_ save the world and I could never have done it without you by my side. And... Honestly? I never want to go without having you next to me again.”

Reyn stops, and stares, and laughs a little before saying, “you really do go off on tangents when you’re nervous, hm?”

“Rude,” Shulk sputters. “I- I was thinking that through for a while before we met up!”

“Uh huh.” Reyn grins and fully wraps Shulk’s hands in his before Shulk can retract into his shell once again.

Looking between them, Shulk asks, “so that means..?”

“Do I really have to spell it out for you?” Reyn laughs. “Yes, Shulk, I love you too.”

The hesitant joy on Shulk’s face breaks out into a smile, bright and radiant and _warm_ like sunshine, and Reyn melts.

**Author's Note:**

> look, im sorry, its almost midnight and i started this months ago and was suddenly struck with the inspiration to finish it
> 
> (the inspiration was definitive edition)


End file.
